Shoe polish kit-can



July 9, 1963 w. o. MARTIN suoa POLISH KIT-CAN Filed Nov. 24, 1961 WILLIAM D. MARTIN BY van. mg.

United States Patent 3,096,535 SHOE POLISH KIT-CAN William D. Martin, 139 Hobart St., Utica, N .Y. Filed Nov. 24, 1961, Ser- No. 154,574 7 Claims. (Cl. 15-258) This invention relates to a cover for containers of shoe polish, the cover having an upwardly projecting portion provided with a soft covering material for use as a polishing means.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a container for shoe polish which has an outwardly offset surface covered with a soft fabric material for polishing shoes after the polish has been applied.

A further object is to provide an inexpensive can of shoe polish, the cover of the can being provided with a comparatively narrow, upwardly offset surface adapted to be covered with a soft fabric for polishing shoes.

A still further object is to provide a cover for a shoe polish can having a raised, diametrically extending, flattopped square-shouldered rib thereacross, the side wall of the cover being provided at each end of the rib with means for stretching and fastening a strip of soft fabric along the rib, the strip being wider than the rib whereby the can is provided with a self-contained polisher and the side edges of the cloth covered rib may be pressed into crevices and indentations of a surface to be polished.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a shoe polish container according to the invention, the polishing strip being partially disengaged;

FIGURE 2 is a top plan View thereof with the strip engaged;

FIGURE 3 is a front elevational view thereof, partly in section on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIGURE 4 is a side elevational view thereof;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of a dauber with the container of FIG. 1;

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 1 with the polishing strip engaged;

FIGURE '7 is a fragmentary transverse sectional view similar to FIG. 3 on a smaller scale of two containers showing a modification of the container of FIG. 1;

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary elevational view of another modification, partly in section on the line 8--8 of FIG. 9; and 1 FIGURE 9 is a fragmentary elevational view of the container of FIG. 8 as viewed from the left.

In the embodiment shown in FIGURES 1-6 of the drawing, the shoe polish container 10 has an open topped bottom portion or receptacle 11 and a mating top portion or cover 12. In FIGURE 3 the receptacle is shown filled with wax-type shoe polish 13 and a conventional dauber 14 is shown resting on the polish within the container.

The dauber 14 is shown in FIG. 5 as comprising two circular layers of cloth stitched together around the edges thereof, the top layer being provided with a diametrically disposed slit 15 through which the fingers may be inserted between the layers for holding the dauber.

The receptacle 11 may also be provided with a conventional type of opening device such as shown at 16 in FIGURES 2 and 3.

The cover 12 has a depending sidewall 17 adapted for engagement with receptacle "11 in the usual manner, as shown, and a top 18. In the top an upwardly indented ridge or rib 20 projects upwardly from the remainder of the cover.

Rib 20 extends diametrically across the cover 12 and for use slightly inwardly and upwardly convergent.

3,096,535 Patented July 9, 1963 ice has an upper flat surface 21 offset above the rest of top 18. For reasons which will hereinafter be apparent, surface '21 is preferably flat but could, if desired, be slightly convexly or concavely curved.

The side walls 22 of rib 2t) define a storage space 23 therebetween and are shown extending vertically between the remainder of top 18 and surface 21. As will hereinafter appear, the side walls could equally well be made Sidewalls 22 curve outwardly and downwardly at 24 to merge with the remainder of top 18 but are only minimally rounded at their upper end to join the flat upper surface 21 in a substantially square shouldered edge 25.

Each end '26 of rib 20 is smoothly curved from the upper surface 21 to gradually merge with the sidewall 17 so that there is no sharp corner or edge at the ends of the rib 20. The sidewall 17 at either end of rib 20 is provided with one portion 27 of a separable fastener 2728, which is shown as a conventional snap. fastener secured in any convenient manner to the cover 12, but may equally well be one portion of any other suitable separable fastening means.

The other portions 28 of the separable fastening means 27-28 are secured in conventional manner to either end of a polishing strip 30. The strip 30 is of soft fabric or similar material such as the canton flannel usually provided for shoe polishing cloths and is of such length as to be stretched tightly along the rib 20 with the soft side up when the two pairs of fasteners 27 and 28 are engaged.

Strip 30 is wider than the rib 20 as shown and is preferably selvedged or provided with a stitched hem at each sideedgc. Alternatively, the strip 30 may be permanently glued or cemented to the surface 21.

In operation the strip 30' may be stored in the .space 23 during shipment or thereafter as desired, and more than one strip 30 may be provided with each can 10. The polishing strip 30 is secured to the cover 12 by means of the fasteners 27-28 when it is desired to polish shoes which have been daubcd with thepolish 13.

Can 10 with the cover attached or the cover 12 alone may be used for polishing and the rib 20 is high enough in relation to the diametrical size of the can 10 so as to reach into the concavity between instep and toe of the shoe to be polished. The flat surface 21 of the rib 20', covered with the strip '30 of polishing cloth, is moved longitudinally of the rib over the surface to be polished in the usual manner.

Strip 30 is stretched tightly and since the side edges of the strip are selveged or hemmed they are drawn be- 10v. the level of the surface 21 and the squareshouldered edges 25 of rib 20 are covered by the cloth. The edges 25 with their cloth covering may therefore be pressed down into cracks or wrinkles in the leather of the shoe so that all portions of the shoe may be polished.

It will now be apparent that the container 10, complete with dauber 14 and polishing cloth 30, may be economically made so as to be competitive in price with conventional shoe polish containers, but completely equipped as a shoe shining kit though more compact and less in price than conventional kits.

In FIGURE 7 a modified form of receptacle 11' is shown with the cover 12. The bottom of the receptacle 11' is formed with an upwardly indented depression 32 adapted to receive and mate with the polishing rib 20 of another container, as shown, so that groups of containers may be nested for shipment and storage. The depression 32 also forms a diametrically disposed rib in the interior of the receptacle 11 to prevent solidified shoe polish from turning within the interior when the dauber is rubbed thereover. When the polish has been substantially used up, the remaining polish is trapped and held in place in the pockets 33 on either side of the rib 32 and so does not become difiicult to pick up with the dauber.

Container has been described as being formed of metal, but obviously the container may be molded or otherwise formed of plastic or other material and modification may be made in the particular type of separable fastener used to secure the polishing strip 30 to the container.

In FIGURES 8 and 9 a modified cover 12' is shown having a tongue 35 turned up from the bottom of the sidewall 17' at each end of the rib 20'. Tongue 35 is adapted to serve as one portion of the separable fastening means for attaching the polishing strip to cover 12, and has a transverse slot 36 therein.

A clip 38 serves as the other portion of the separable fastening means and has an inwardly turned blunthooked end 39 at its lower extremity adapted to be engaged in the slot 36 of tongue 35.

The upper portion of clip 38 is provided with a plurality of inwardly and downwardly bent sharp pointed hooks 40 adapted to pierce and engage the material of the polishing strip 36, as shown.

In operation, the tongues '35 may be pressed against the sidewall 17 until the cloth strip 30 is to be attached. When the tongues are bent away from the sidewall the blunt-hooked end 39 of each clip 38 is engaged in its appropriate slot 36 and the sharp hooks of each clip are engaged in the cloth of strip 30' to stretch the strip along and over the rib 20.

As will be apparent to those familiar with the art, the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The embodiment disclosed therefore is to be considered in all respects as illustrative rather than restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A cover for a polish container comprising a top and a depending sidewall, said top having an upstanding rib extending diametrically thereacross, said rib being adapted to be covered with a soft material and to be used as a polisher.

2. A shoe polish container cover comprising a top and a depending sidewall, said top having an upstanding, flat-topped square-shouldered rib extending diametrically thereacross, and a strip of soft polisher material wider than said rib secured over the top surface of said rib, said rib being adapted to extend into the concave portion of a shoe between toe and instep.

3. The cover of claim 2 having cooperating separable fastening means secured to said sidewall at either end of said rib and at either end of said strip whereby said strip is stretched over the flat surface of said rib.

4. A shoe polish container comprising: a bottom receptacle portion for shoe polish; a cover for said receptacle, said cover having a top, 21 depending sidewall, and an upstanding fiat-topped, square-shouldered rib indented up from said top and extending diametrically thereacross; a strip of polishing cloth having releasable fastening means secured to either end; and cooperating releasable fastening means on the cover sidewall at either end of said rib whereby said strip may be stored within said container and thereafter stretched along the fiat top of the rib and secured at either end to the cover; said rib being of a height adapted to reach into the concavity of a shoe between toe and instep; and said strip being wider than the rib, whereby the cloth lying along the squareshouldered side edges of the rib may be pressed into crevices and indentations of a shoe to be polished.

5. The container of claim 4 having a diametrically disposed indentation in the bottom of said receptacle portion, said indentation being adapted to receive and mate with the rib on the top of another container whereby a plurality of containers may be nested.

6. The container of claim 4,wherein said fastening means comprise separable snap fasteners having one portion secured to either end of the strip and the other portion secured to the cover sidewall at either end of the rib.

7. The container of claim 4 having a slotted tongue connected to the cover sidewall at either end of the rib, and a pair of clip members having teeth for engagement with the ends of the polishing strip, each clip member having a hooked end for engagement with one of said slotted tongues.

N 0 references cited. 

1. A COVER FOR A POLISH CONTAINER COMPRISING A TOP AND A DEPENDING SIDEWALL, SAID TOP HAVING AN UPSTANDING RIB EXTENDING DIAMETRICALLY THEREACROSS, SAID RIB BEING ADAPTED TO BE COVERED WITH A SOFT MATERIAL AND TO BE USED AS A POLISHER. 